


All I could do was wait around

by the_milky_way



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: FBI Agent Danny Mahealani, FBI Agent Stiles Stilinski, Future Fic, Getting Together, M/M, Magical Danny Mahealani, POV Danny Mahealani, Post-Canon, Pre-Relationship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-14
Updated: 2021-02-14
Packaged: 2021-03-12 17:20:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,318
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29264166
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/the_milky_way/pseuds/the_milky_way
Summary: It’s not like there is anything holding him here now. His best friend has been gone for ages, things with Ethan are definitely over and all the werewolf-related drama lately has made him roll his eyes so hard that it almost hurts.orDanny meets someone from his past again and doesn't really know how deal.
Relationships: Danny Mahealani/Stiles Stilinski
Comments: 2
Kudos: 45
Collections: Chocolate Box - Round 6





	All I could do was wait around

**Author's Note:**

> Hi there,
> 
> this idea about a post-canon reunion came to me really early on. But I also sort of tried to take some of your tropes/likes and work them into it as well.  
> It was fun coming back to Teen Wolf and those two, so I hope you like it.

When his tutu tells him to pack things up and be ready to leave Danny doesn’t question it. Grandma orders, everyone listens and does what they are told. To be honest, he has been feeling the disturbances in the ley lines and the Nemeton lately - as in getting dizzy when he tries magic, having headaches when he helps tutu with protection spells and so on. Everytime those idiots of the McCall pack mess with something Danny’s magic goes a little off the rails. And not only his, but half his family is affected in ways that aren’t nice. 

So leaving doesn’t sound too bad. He’s almost done with school. Six months somewhere else won’t hurt him graduating at the top of almost everyone. He never got why people thought Lydia or Stiles were stupid. Sometimes he can barely keep up with their brains. And if someone would ask, he’d admit that in Stiles’ case it’s sort of a turn on, always has been even though Danny has only ever joked about it. Too scared to dive deeper, to expose himself. Too scared to get caught up in things his tutu has always warned him about. 

It’s not like there is anything holding him here now. His best friend has been gone for ages, things with Ethan are definitely over and all the werewolf-related drama lately has made him roll his eyes so hard that it almost hurts. The thing is, safe for Ethan no one really bothered to listen to him or even questioned what he was doing in the middle of all the chaos. They thought him clueless or maybe just wanted to pretend, to have something less to worry about. 

They sometimes needed his special skills. Which he never minded because it came easy to him. With a little magic support even the safest networks can be hacked. He’d only been careless once, learned from it and hadn’t been caught again. But they never really asked how he does it. Stiles came close once, when he tried to convince Danny that the muscular guy in his bedroom was his cousin. 

None of them ever actually realized that he knew and probably stil knows more than them and has helped in subtle ways. And most of the time he prefers it this way. The less people know the safer he and his family are. So when tutu says pack up, it is what he does. Saying goodbye to Beacon Hills feels weird but good as well. 

+++

A few of his less magically inclined relatives stay back though, keep an eye on things and let him know what’s going on. He never not knows what his former team or classmates are up to. And sometimes he wonders how they are all still alive. But most of the time Beacon Hills feels like a distant dream. Some memory he doesn’t really know where to put or how to deal with. It’s a lot that has happened, a lot to sift through and Danny never feels the need to really deal with this part of his life. He wasn’t unhappy there, had a good time, a good life.

But he always sort of felt like he didn’t really belong. The broken Nemeton, the disturbed ley lines, twisted magic left and right - it all contributed to the feeling of somehow being repelled, of being pushed away. And the longer he lived there, the stronger this feeling got - until he and his immediate family couldn’t withstand any longer. 

Getting away from it all had felt so freeing, so fundamentally right that Danny allowed himself a deep sigh and a happy smile when tutu said as much. But Beacon Hills never really leaves his thoughts though. It is there, in the back of his mind as a place that has failed him. A place he had failed, too. He couldn’t help with protecting it or the people who needed it. 

It’s probably one of the reasons he ends up working in Quantico. He wants to help people, use his skills for something good. They recruited him right out of college and tutu encouraged him to go. So he did. And he likes the work. It allows him to keep an eye on his family and on Beacon Hills as well. 

Danny sometimes thinks of Scott and how he could have done more to support the new werewolf. Thinks about how instead he followed tutu’s lead and let it all play out like fate wanted it to. He thinks of Lydia and how he misses their rapid fire discussions about every other topic. He thinks about the Hales and how the land still belongs to them, how it craves their guidance and their spirit. He wonders if it’ll all settle down once a Hale claims it back for a pack. He remembers Jackson and sometimes wonders how they became the friends they were. Smiles when he gets a text or a call from across the ocean.

He grieves Allison and how he couldn’t prevent her death even though tutu had warned him about the loose spirit and how dangerous it could become to his friends. It brings him to thoughts of Ethan, of how that was one messed up relationship. How he knew all along he was being played and went along with it anyway because there was something fascinating about the other man. He almost chokes on his coffee when Jackson tells him this particular news. They are happy together, so Danny only grins, shrugs when his mother asks what’s up and sends them a flower bouquet with a strain of wolfsbane that works as an aphrodisiac.

The one person he sort of always wonders about is Stiles, though. Danny doesn’t even really know why but something about Stiles stuck with him, impressed him so much that even years later he wonders how the guy is doing. The minor crush he harbored through his entire highschool career doesn’t help either. It’s not the driving aspect but it plays a role nonetheless. Danny is only human after all.

Sure he gets updates from time to time. From his family back in Beacon Hills. From Jackson. From Lydia even. And sometimes, when he feels like it, he checks all the common and not so common databases. So Danny knows enough to figure that Stiles went through hell, came back fighting and swinging, got to be with Lydia only to end up somewhere where she couldn’t or didn’t want to follow.

All this though, doesn’t prepare him for the run-in almost a decade after he left Beacon Hills.

+++

He should have known that Quantico would be the place to crash into Stiles Stilinski. Literally. As Danny lies there, on his back, with his bag and files spread around him, he wonders what kind of brick wall hit him this damn hard.

“Fuck Mahealani. I mean not like this. We went over this years ago. But damn… Let me help you up. I am so sorry. I was… occupied.”

He knows this kind of rambling. Has dealt with it on so many different occasions that hearing it sort of feels a little like coming home. Danny snorts at that, feels a little pathetic at the same time. Because yeah, it’s so like him to go right back to the crush the second he crashes into said crush.

“Good to know that you can still talk your way out of things, Stilinski,” is what he says when he’s back on his feet. 

The second he actually looks at the man in front of him Danny sort of loses all ability to think or you know, even breathe. He kinda chokes on the breath he was about to take. Because this? This is not the Stiles Stilinski Danny remembers. This is the hottest man he’s ever seen.

The wide grin and sparkling whiskey brown eyes showcase the amusement Stiles is clearly trying to suppress. The hand on Danny’s forearm where he helped Danny up feels like a branding - touch searing into skin. He feels the heat creeping up his neck to his cheeks and really hopes that the blush isn’t that visible. Judging from the broadening smile on Stiles’ lips that’s not the case. Great. So much for it just being a high school crush and him being over it.

“Shoulda known you’d end up here. You were way too cool with our teenaged bumbling through the supernatural,” Stiles says with a wink and hands him the last of his files back. All of them stamped with the section 18 logo, which only personnel in the know can identify. 

“Stiles!” 

The shout sounds urgent, like it isn’t the first time Stiles is being called. And is that Hale? Nah, can’t be.

“Hold your horse. I’m coming. Jeez. Sorry, Danny. Gotta go. Impatient partners are the pest.” 

The last part is shouted in a way that makes it clear Stiles really, really wants the recipient to hear it. The answering growl makes Stiles grin devilishly. For a moment it’s like Danny is back in the halls of Beacon High.

“Hey, I am down at section 20. If you have time one of these days we should catch up.”

Danny can only muster up a nod before Stiles is gone, vanished around the corner Danny came from earlier. His mind is whirling, trying to branch out into so many directions, seeking answers to so many questions that it takes him another five minutes of just standing there before he can continue on to his office.

Section 20. That’s five security levels above his own and Danny wonders what things Stiles has seen to land him a position within one of the most secret operation units there is. He stags his files on the far end of his desk, way too distracted to even think about working through them right now. 

He briefly wonders if he could use his special skills to find out what Stiles is working on but thinks better of it. He isn’t qualified to know and he isn’t willing to breach several people's trust in him to what… further a crush he’s not sure can go anywhere?

But Jesus fucking Christ that man is hot. Danny is sort of floored by that. He has always known that Stiles was someone he found attractive. Apparently that hasn’t changed. Just the glimpse he got of him in the hallway is enough to fill his dreams for the next few weeks.

+++

It is sort of pathetic how fast Danny gets hooked on Stiles Stilinski. It hadn’t been like this in high school. No, that had been much tamer, more joke than anything else. Now though, Danny actually checks up on Stiles’ missions, stares maybe a little too long at video feeds he’s tasked to analyze but can’t concentrate on due to the pretty. He feels bad about it, too. Because he hates being objectified and he’s basically doing that same - just from afar. 

Deep down Danny knows it’s too late to take a step back and not get caught up in this kind of drama again. He’s been involved with straight guys before and he swore he’d never do it again. But Danny isn’t even sure if Stiles really is all that straight.

It takes him a month and several rather embarrassing phone calls to Jackson to muster up the courage to message Stiles about catching up. He timed it well, knowing that Agent Stilinski would be out in the field for the next several days. Time enough to hype himself up for what basically feels like a mini high school reunion which he distinctively doesn’t feel ready for.

The day he knows Stiles is supposed to be back Danny tries to distract himself with work. Decoding secret messages of underworld gangs is actually a good way to do just that. So he works and works and works some more only to end his day realizing that Stiles never got back to him. The way the disappointment lies heavy in his belly is a surprise. He doesn’t really know how to deal with it. Maybe Stiles has yet to read the message.

He goes out with some of his colleagues that night. They are sort of friends, closer than just colleagues but not close enough to talk about personal matters. He tries to drown his sorrows in expensive vodka cocktails when he catches pieces of a discussion from the table next to them. It’s about an operation almost going wrong. Which isn’t unusual and Danny wonders why that caught his attention. It isn’t until Stiles’ name gets mentioned that he perks up. He can’t hear most of it but gets the gist anyway. 

Operation gone awry because of bad intel. That’s never a good thing. And apparently Stiles got caught in the middle of it which landed him in hospital with a concussion, bruises and a twisted ankle. To everyone’s surprise he was spared the experience of a gunshot wound. There’s more but Danny doesn’t hear it. Heart pounding in his chest, hands sweaty and mind whirling with a mixture of thoughts makes him rather bad company and he excuses himself for the night.

He feels bad about his earlier disappointment but also knows that he couldn’t have done anything even if someone had told him. He wonders if he should visit Stiles but dismisses that thought again. They aren’t close. They barely know each other. They weren’t set to go on a date. It was just an invitation to catch up. Nothing more. If he’s feeling anything beyond that, it’s his problem to deal with. He doesn’t even know where this is coming from. 

So he doesn’t visit Stiles. He doesn’t enquire after him either, which is a hard task but manageable. Danny knows he’s always been too curious for it to be healthy. It’s his nature. And his magic inherently supports this part of his character somewhat. But he holds back, does his job and tries not to get tripped up everytime he reads or hears Stiles’ name. It works for a while. Until it doesn’t.

Until Stiles’ presence graces Danny’s office and leaves him floundering.

+++

Two weeks after that mission went wrong Danny’s working his way through encoded files connected to the suspect of said mission. He didn’t figure it out until he was halfway through the first file. To speed things up he utilized a little bit of his other skill set and had the data sorted within two hours. He sent a memo to the section in charge and went back to the rest of the files.

“Danny?”

The voice from the door to his office startles him so much that he actually flails. His pen goes flying and he knocks his elbow against the desk when he tries to turn around towards the door. He manages to sort his body out after a bit. When he looks Stiles has a hand clamped over mouth and is staring at him with wide eyes.

“Are you laughing at me?” Danny musters up as much indignity as he can find within himself and scowls. Because yes, Stiles is laughing.

“Man, I am really sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.”

And he sounds sincere even though Danny can still see the sparkle of amusement lingering in Stiles’ eyes. He forces himself to look away, simply to not get drawn in and drown in the depth of them. He lets his eyes linger on the fading bruises on Stiles’ jaw, on the cut that’s still visible on his left cheek before he turns back to his files.

“What can I do for you Agent Stilinski?”

They are at work after all. But retreating to a formal atmosphere makes Danny a little more comfortable. He doesn’t know how to deal with Stiles these days. He feels so out of his depth here that it’s hard to find a ground he feels safe navigating on.

“Right. Uh. The memo you sent, I need more info about that code from page 4. We’re trying to set up another bust and this seems to be the most veritable intel we have right now.”

And just like that they are caught up in the bubble of codes, intel and working to prepare another operation for Stiles’ team. So caught up that only Danny’s end of the day alarm pulls them out of it. He knows why he sets it every other day. It’s not a rare occurrence that he gets sucked into work so deeply that he forgets to go home. 

“Wow. I think that’s the longest in months my brain managed to concentrate on a task. Nice work, Danny.”

Danny nods as Stiles gets up to leave. He doesn’t know what to say, how to bring up topics outside of work so he keeps quiet. It’s so not like him. He has always been able to come up with a conversation opener, a one-liner or even something that sounds flirty enough to get him what he wants. Not with Stiles these days. It’s sort of a reverse situation from high school where Stiles was the uncoordinated cute dork and he was the smooth talker. Not so much anymore. 

“Hey, Danny. Listen… I’m sorry I didn’t get back to you about the catch-up. I was a little laid up…” Stiles says - from the door again, face blank but the look in his eyes actually shows real sorrow. He means it.

“I know. It’s alright. Don’t worry.”

At least he’s able to get a full sentences out this time. He’s ready to go back to work when Stiles steps back into the office. The closing of his door has Danny looking up curiously. What’s this all about?

“How about Friday?”

“Friday?”

“Yeah. Are you free?”

Is Stiles asking what Danny thinks he is asking? This comes rather out of the blue there and Danny isn’t really sure how to react to that. Of course he wants to say yes but then he doesn’t want to assume and dig himself deeper into that embarrassing infatuation he has going on. But who can blame him with the way Stiles actually grew up? The dorky teenager grew into a rather gorgeous sometimes dorky man. 

“I… uh…”

“To be clear. I am asking you out here, Danny.”

Right. Okay. So it is what he was thinking it is. But what? Danny remembers joking about sleeping with Stiles because the guy ranted about having sex in the locker room. And really as subtle as he wasn't about the supernatural and werewolves and such Stiles never let on if he would actually be interested. But then again, Danny always sort of thought of Stiles being open to a lot of things - so why not sexuality or sexual preferences as well?

“Okay.” 

Danny doesn’t even think about it. Because he knows he’d regret it if he doesn’t take this chance. Life has the tendency to bring back together the people who are supposed to be close - in whatever capacity that might be. So yes, he wants to go out with Stiles and see where this might go.

“Okay. Great. I’m gonna send you the details later. Gotta figure where to whine and dine you. I.. uh… should go.”

And there it is, the glimpse of the Stiles Stilinski Danny first developed a minor crush on and which he is happy to see is still some part of the man in front of him. He lets the smirk grow that he knows always made Stiles flustered. Thinking back, Danny should have figured that given the chance they might end up where they are now. 

The slight flush on Stiles’ cheeks is cute. The happy sparkle in his eyes makes them shine even more. Danny likes what he sees and he hopes that they can figure this out together.

“See you on Friday, Stiles.”

**Author's Note:**

> Tutu generally means "grandparent" in Hawaiian. It's a nickname and can be used for grandmother as well.
> 
> Title is from the song "California Halo Blue" by AWOLNATION
> 
> Thanks so much for the betaing services again, A.  
> <3


End file.
